WEST WHITELAND—Discount grocer Aldi just opened its first store in Chester County, off Route 100 on the south side of Route 30.

Aldi built the 16,000-square-foot store on land once occupied by Frank’s Nursery and Crafts before that retailer went belly-up in 2004.

Commented Bob Grammer, vice president of Aldi’s Center Valley division, “We’re pleased about the density and the traffic at this Exton location. We’re directly across Route 30 from Kohl’s and we have 80 parking spaces.”

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Aldi calls itself a “select assortment discount grocer,” which means that it carries in-house brands of 1,200 of the most popular grocery items.

Stores also sell fresh meats, fish, fruits and veggies—prepackaged, for the most part.

The chain touts that consumers save up to 50 percent on its in-house brands when compared with such national brands as Nabisco, Kellogg and Green Giant.

Aldi has 32 stores in Pennsylvania and 1,200 nationwide in 32 states, largely situated from Kansas to the East Coast.

The new store employs 10 full- and part-time workers, and is a template for how Aldi usually enters a market: It buys land and builds a new store from the ground up, Grammer said.

According to Grammer, the store curbs overhead costs through a cart rental system, a small store footprint and open carton displays. Often, customers bring their own shopping bags. With cart rental, customers insert a quarter to release a cart and then receive the quarter back once the cart is returned.

The store also offers customers a double guarantee: If someone is not 100 percent satisfied with a food product, Aldi will replace it and refund the customer’s money.

The West Whiteland store opened its doors on Saturday, Dec. 1, and will hold its grand opening Thursday, Dec. 6, with food samples, raffles and a limited inventory of toys for sale. Occasionally, the store sells seasonal goods, such as heaters, housewares and plants.

The chain’s U.S. headquarters is in Batavia, Ill., outside Chicago. Aldi is a subsidiary of the German chain of the same name. Aldi is short for Albrecht Discount, first begun in 1913.